Stephan’s ‘very honest discussion’ with axed QPR keeper Nardi
Julien Stephan says he had a “very honest discussion” with Paul Nardi before dropping the QPR goalkeeper.
Nardi, who had been playing in the absence of the injured Joe Walsh, was left out for the draw at Sheffield United prior to the international break.
Veteran keeper Ben Hamer, signed as short-term cover after Walsh was sidelined by a broken wrist, was brought into the side and is expected to keep his place against Hull on Saturday.
Head coach Stephan also moved Amadou Mbengue to right-back and Jimmy Dunne to centre-back.
Asked about telling Nardi he was being replaced, Stephan said: “It was a very honest discussion.
“We spoke before the game and the deal was very clear; I said to him ‘I wanted to change something, I will change the goalkeeper and I will change as well the position of two players’.
“When you concede a lot of goals without (there seeming) a lot of danger, you can have different options; you can change your structure, you can change the position of the players, you can change the goalkeeper.
“We decided to change the position of Amadou and Jimmy, and we decided as well to change the position of the goalkeeper.”
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Hamer, 37, impressed on his debut – his first match for 18 months.
But Stephan indicated that he has not closed the door on fellow Frenchman Nardi.
Stephan said: “Ben did very well against Sheffield but he didn’t play for 18 months, so it’s a long, long time, and now let’s see if he’s able to play three games in a row or more games – it’s a new situation.
“Now it’s a new run, so let’s see what happens. It’s game-by-game and we will adjust the situation game-by-game.”
